Author's Note: Hello readers! Sorry for the late uploading schedule (once again) but I've been distracted by other things going on in my life lately. I've also come to an important decision that I think needs to be addressed regarding my stories. I've decided to put everything else on hold so that I can finish the Legacy of Jarik Shan series, as it's taken a lot longer than I originally anticipated.
Part of this comes from the fact that maintaining my focus between several stories all at once is really hard to do, while also maintaining a continuous upload schedule. Not to mention the longer it takes to finish this story, the more it hinders my ability to progress and do things in others, specifically the Reylea storyline. There's even something in 'Secrets of Jinn' that ties directly into my plans for what the Sequel era will be like in the Shaniverse, and I don't really want to spoil it prematurely. (in Mysteries of Reylea, dancing around certain things to try and not spoil LOJS V5 is becoming a bit frustrating, and I don't think it helps that story to avoid things like this)
So anyways, all of my stories aside from the Legacy of Jarik Shan (V5 of course, then V2 and V1), is not going to receive any more updates until I finish V5. It may be a bit disappointing, but I think this is the best way to move forward without ruining the overall storyline. There are things that will be revealed in V5 that are absolutely essential to know for everything to make sense going forward.
I hope you all will understand my reasoning, and here's to hoping I can finish up V5 very soon! I'm planning to have it completed at the very latest by the end of the summer. So let's get right back into it!
Kijimi System - Mid Rim
Jarik POV...
Raman helped me through the cruiser to the Knight Hawk while the Mantis Crew traveled with us. We were in relative silence for more of the way, only engaging in casual discussion. Raman was more focused on leading me along a safer route, ensuring that I wouldn't be seen by his fellow clan members.
"So, you gonna take up the mantle of Mandalore?" I ask him.
"I'm not sure I'm the right man for that role," he says in reply.
"You've got my seal of approval," I remark.
Raman scoffs sarcastically in response.
"No offense, but that doesn't help in the slightest," he points out.
"Fair enough," I say with a sigh. "How many 'Mandalore's' did you have anyway?"
"We've had several in ancient history. It's the title we give to our best leader. There's Mandalore the Ultimate of course, though the title was established by Mandalore the First," Raman explains. "Canderous Ordo became Mandalore the Preserver, and there were a handful after that, such as Mandalore the Uniter and Mandalore the Avenger."
"Avenger?" I ask curiously, intrigued by the name. "Sounds cool. I feel like I'll use that one day."
"Hmph," he scoffs in reply, slightly amused, before becoming a bit somber. "Anyways, we haven't had a Mandalore in many generations, scattered as we are."
"From my understanding, Mandalorian warriors have been divided since the Mandalorian Wars," Cere comments.
"That would be correct. Ever since Revan's actions at the Battle of Malachor V, we've been incapable of fully uniting once more," Raman explains.
"As warriors, wouldn't your sense of honor and duty compel you to remain together?" Merrin asks.
"You'd think it would, but as it turns out, it doesn't," he scoffs bitterly.
"Well that sounds pretty lousy," Cal murmurs to her.
"Hmph," Raman says, unable to argue the point.
We walk through a door and into a small hangar, revealing the Knight Hawk as well as the Mantis nearby. A problem instantly presents itself in HK-47 and R5 having some sort of argument with each other, while Mara tried to put a stop to it. Hiccup and Astrid looked lost on what to do, although Hiccup I could tell was itching to get involved, while Toothless observed curiously.
"Ugh, you've got to be kidding me," I grumble.
"Since when did droids get into arguments?" Merrin asks incredulously.
"If they've got enough personality, I suppose," Cal shrugs, baffled. "Though I've never thought something could get that bad…"
"And both droids have plenty of it," I say irritably.
"I can't stand that assassin droid," Raman growls in annoyance. "Was it like that with Revan?"
"From what I know, that's a yes," I murmur in reply. "Unfortunately."
"I think somebody should put a stop to that before it gets any worse," Cere advises warily.
Judging by how Mara is having to hold back R5 from zapping HK with his electric prod, I decide she's right. Scowling in frustration I slip away from Raman, feeling more capable of walking now, and storm over to the droids. R5 was beeping furiously while HK seemed indifferent, his arms crossed.
"Statement: You know I'm right tin can," he was saying smugly.
"Hey!" I interrupt, glaring at them all. "What is going on here?"
R5 squeals in agitation, though Mara keeps him back with an annoyed look on her face.
"Chaos, that's what!" she scoffs. "Will you stop it already?!"
She kicks R5 on the side, and he beeps in outrage. A look from me however has him quieting down, putting his prod away with scathing grumbles.
"Can I not leave you alone for two seconds?!" I say in exasperation. "What are you two arguing about?"
"Statement: Just some valid criticisms that your little friend seemed unable to take," HK says matter of factly.
"Not from what I was hearing," Mara scoffs, and R5 beeps in agreement.
I stare at them all disbelievingly and turn towards Hiccup and Astrid, raising an eyebrow questioningly.
"Well… from my understanding, HK was making fun of the ship, and R5 didn't like that. It kept getting worse until HK started insulting R5 too," Hiccup explains.
"I don't even know if I want to know what those words meant," Astrid adds uneasily.
I rub my hand angrily over my face while the others join up with me. Footsteps from nearby herald the arrival of Greez, who walks out of his ship to stand on the ramp. A smaller BD unit droid is standing beside him, beeping questioningly.
"Is the ruckus finally over?" Greez asks gruffly.
"Yeah, seems so," Cal replies.
"Ugh, thank the universe," he sighs in relief, moving back inside.
The BD droid chirps, scuttling out from the ship and over to Cal, jumping onto his shoulder with happy beeps.
"Hey BD-1," Cal says with a small smile. "Doing alright?"
The droid beeps again and he, Cal and Merrin start conversing quietly with each other, the droid apparently shaken up slightly by HK and R5.
"Offensive question: Jarik Shan, do you actually believe that this piece of" HK starts to say.
"No, shut it- shut shut shut shut shut! Zip it!" I interrupt fiercely, making aggravated gestures. "I don't want to hear it! If you're going to pick an argument with everyone you talk to then don't talk at all."
"Statement: The idea of withholding my words for fear of offending someone is more offensive than just killing them," he retorts.
"I don't care. Just stop aggravating my droid," I snap angrily.
"Musing: What a sensitive batch of meatbags you are," he scoffs, looking at R5. "You most of all."
R5 squeals angrily once more, preparing to charge forward.
"R5, just stop!" I exclaims, glaring at him. "You're being an issue too. Just get inside and get the ship ready to go."
R5 grumbles in simmering anger but withholds himself, beeping several scathing remarks to HK as he rolls up the open ramp. BD-1 chirps in surprise at one of his comments while HK scoffs in laughter; I roll my eyes in irritation at his insult while Mara makes a face, slightly bewildered.
"Uhh…" she trails off.
"Just don't, Mara," I sigh in exhaustion.
"What was said?" Merrin asks.
"I'd rather not say," Cal replies.
"Statement: That was most amusing," HK comments.
"Shut up," I scowl, turning to face the Vikings. "You guys get settled in the ship. We'll be leaving shortly."
"Okay," Astrid replies.
"Let's go Toothless," Hiccup says, ushering him into the ship.
Once they're inside I face the rest of the group, sighing tiredly once more.
"If you want to get ready to go I'll let you know how to get to the rebel base, and you can follow us," I suggest.
"Sounds good. We'll see you there," Cere nods in reply.
She turns and gestures for her group to head back to their ship, and I finally turn to say my farewells to Raman.
"I guess this is it for now," I tell him.
"Although it ended rather poorly, I'm glad you reached out to us Jarik," he replies gratefully. "It'll take some time, but I'm sure I'll be able to get the rest of the clan to understand we don't have to hate you anymore."
"I'd appreciate it," I smile in reply, before a thought comes to mind. "That reminds me… there's something I need to show you."
"There is?" Mara asks, confused.
"Yeah, that drive you gave me," I say, referring to HK.
"Musing: Indeed, Canderous wished it to be seen," he replies.
I pull it out from my belt and observe the drive for a moment, looking back at him.
"Do you have a holo display or something?" I ask him.
In response he holds out his hand expectantly, and I hand it back to him. As he brings up something in order to display the footage Raman turns to me with a questioning gaze.
"What is it you're showing me?" he asks.
"Truthfully I don't know, but it's supposed to be really important," I shrug in reply.
"Statement: It is ready for you," HK says.
We turn back to face him, and he projects a blue hologram from his optics, showcasing it in the air before us. It was very old footage; I could tell based on the lesser quality and lack of any coloration, but it was still enough to make out what was there. In the hologram were two figures: Revan, and who could only be Mandalore the Ultimate. The latter was lying on the ground, clearly wounded.
I look on in slight surprise, the other two all doing the same, though there was a narrowing tension in Raman's gaze, recognizing what this was. The hologram of Mandalore the Ultimate coughed, obviously in pain, looking up at Revan.
"What're you waiting for?" he says softly, his voice an angry hiss. "Just do it already."
Revan hesitates, still standing over his fallen foe.
"I can't," he replies.
Ultimate laughs mockingly in response, his laugh quickly turning into a pained cough.
"Oh? A monster like you willing to kill his own for victory can't bear to finish me off?" he sneers.
"You're calling me a monster? After all you've done yourself?" Revan demands.
"My people were suffering, and I sought to… to help them!" Ultimate retorts angrily, coughing again. "While you turned your back, preferring to see them fall to the dust."
The amount of anger in Ultimate's voice was intense, but not surprising. It was affecting Raman as well, I could sense him trying to contain his emotions.
"What is the purpose of this, beskar'ad?" he demands coldly, glaring at HK-47.
"Canderous told me that Mandalore needed to understand," HK replies simply.
I almost miss the fact that he spoke that sentence without using a descriptive term beforehand. Mara and I share a wary glance with each other, but continue watching.
"I never wanted this, but I did what I had to do!" Revan states fiercely. "You're the one who started this war!"
Ultimate scoffs in reply, and Revan crouches down in front of him, deactivating his lightsaber.
"What I don't understand is... why," he says quietly. "Why would you want war?"
"I never wanted a war!" Ultimate snaps angrily, grimacing with intense pain for a moment.
"So why did you start it?!" Revan shouts, his voice angry and pleading.
"I-I didn't…" Ultimate starts to say, but falters.
He stares off at nothing for a few seconds, his face contorting from anger, hesitation, confusion, and then suspicion, which morphs into anger once more.
"No… I am betrayed," he hisses.
"Betrayed?" Revan asks slowly. "What are you talking about?"
"I am betrayed!" Ultimate exclaims, his anger fading away into sadness and regret, and he continues at a defeated whisper. "They tricked me... We were never meant to win this war. They used me and my people to test the Republic's strength."
"Who used you?" he asks carefully, almost fearing the answer.
Ultimate's eyes narrow, and he turns to look back up at Revan.
"The Sith," he answers.
Revan pulls his head back in alarm at the statement, alarmed by the answer.
I look up from the hologram to glance at Raman, gaging his reaction. He seemed surprised as well, confused and angry all at the same time as he tries to make sense of it. I notice HK-47 glancing in my direction and I frown thoughtfully in response, also catching Mara's gaze. She was uncertain and a bit worried over it, but we resumed watching as Ultimate spoke again.
"They came to me with an offer, to fight a worthy enemy in battle that would be remembered forever, and my people would finally achieve greatness," Ultimate explains, scoffing. "Only now do I see the truth…"
Ultimate coughs some more, blood now beginning to spurt out as he becomes weaker, almost lying completely on his side now. When his coughing fit is subdued, he looks down at the floor with a sigh, looking defeated, no longer appearing angry.
"I was a fool… and I doomed us," he murmurs.
"Tarre…" Revan says, making him look up in surprise. "There's still time."
"Why would you help me? After all I've done?" he demands suspiciously.
"You were my friend once… my brother," he tells him. "I can't let you die for this."
Ultimate… Tarre Vizsla… looks up at Revan with an unreadable gaze, his eyes softening only slightly. He looks down with a hopeless expression, shaking his head and coughing some more.
"It's too late for me… they will hear of this," Tarre murmurs weakly, no longer attempting to support himself as his eyelids shutter, his breathing labored. "It wasn't supposed to end... like this..."
Tarre's voice trails off into nothing as his body slumps lifelessly on the ground, his eyes closing. Revan looks on in a panic, stubborn refusal and helplessness evident in his voice.
"Tarre… Tarre! Don't you dare!" he growls angrily. "Tarre!"
Revan shakes Tarre's body in an attempt to wake him up, but there was no more movement. The hologram recording then disappears with an abrupt ending as the video comes to an end. I let out a sigh as I turn to face my uncle, certain there are some things he will want to say. He's standing still, his gaze still fixated on where the hologram was being displayed as his mind raced with a multitude of thoughts and questions.
"Uncle?" I ask carefully.
He pulls away from his musing to look at me, his face full of uncertainty.
"I… don't know what to think," he says slowly.
"Despite all their differences… they were still friends in the end," I realize with a sad sigh. "It took Vizsla's death to reveal it."
"Yes, it did," Raman murmurs uneasily. "If that recording is genuine…"
"Statement: This recording came directly from the Mandalorian vessel itself, and was recovered by Canderous Ordo in the aftermath. My analysis indicates it has been unaltered," HK says.
"Maybe so," he replies quietly. "I don't understand. How could the Sith be responsible for the war? The war started because my people desired strength and unity, which the Republic refused to permit us!"
"Maybe that's what they wanted you to believe," I suggest. "The Sith Emperor Vitiate was one of the most evil, deceptive, and powerful beings ever in galactic history. If he ever wanted something, he usually got it."
"Correction: Revan was able to manipulate him though, which I find quite impressive," HK chirps.
"Dude… not exactly the time to glorify Revan," Mara points out in exasperation.
"Confused query: What are you rambling about…? Oh, right. Don't offend the Mandalorian in the room. My apologies," he replies sarcastically.
I shake my head in annoyance, but Raman doesn't pay attention to him, still thinking hard.
"So all this time… Mandalore has been nothing but a tool of the Sith?" he asks quietly.
"I'm afraid so," I nod in reply.
He's silent for a long time, mulling over his thoughts before I sense anger start to well through him, followed by determination. A hard look crosses his face as he looks back up at me, his eyes filled with a high intensity.
"I may still have mixed feelings about Revan, but I now know the firm truth, which is that the Sith have used and manipulated Mandalore for long enough. It's time we finally fight back, and make them answer for it," he proclaims.
"I'm glad to hear it," I smile at him.
"Observation: A mandalorian with the proper spine and directive? It's almost impossible to believe!" HK exclaims in bewilderment.
"Ugh, even I'm not that bad…" Mara groans, smacking her forehead in disbelief.
"Query: What is your issue, meatbag?" he scoffs, looking down at her.
Raman shakes his head in irritation while I let out another sigh at the assassin droid's blunt rudeness to everyone and everything but himself.
"I can't guarantee anything, but I feel that this recording may very well ease the hatred my clan has of you, and perhaps all of Mandalore," Raman says encouragingly. "At the very least, it will definitely help us realize who is truly responsible for our afflictions."
"I really appreciate it. That's more than I could have asked for," I tell him gratefully.
"It's less than you deserve," he replies sincerely.
A bit of emotion wells up in me at the statement, my thoughts drifting back to my father, and we share a heartfelt embrace with each other.
"Take care, nephew," he tells me.
"I will, uncle. Thank you," I say in reply.
We separate from each other, both feeling content, and I look over to see Mara and HK still bickering with each other.
"Alright, that's enough," I interrupt, rolling my eyes. "HK, could you hand him the recording?"
"Query: The recording of Revan and Mandalore the Ultimate? I was instructed to give it only to-" he starts to say in protest.
"Yeah, I know, but I want you to hand it to Raman," I interrupt in exasperation. "He'll need it for his clan."
If droids had facial expressions, HK would look super irritated right now. It's actually not that hard to see it anyways. Nevertheless he obeys my order and tosses the disc drive over to Raman, who catches it in his hand.
"Statement: I find this very irritating," HK grumbles.
"Yeah, we noticed," Mara says sarcastically.
"Until next time," Raman calls out, waving to us.
I wave back as we walk up the ramp and into the Knight Hawk, closing it behind us. He starts walking away as the ramp closes, and I make my way up to the cockpit to contact the Mantis Crew and start our way back to Atollon.
While the smoky blue tunnel of hyperspace passed us by out the cockpit window, I sat in the pilot's seat with a troubled frown on my face, pondering everything that has occurred in the last few days. The 'Storm,' as we've decided to call it, is definitely on my mind, as is Clan Ordo, but most of my concern is on what Vader revealed.
He knows about Ahch-To. And if Vader knows, then the Emperor knows as well.
I don't even want to think about the possibility of Ahch-To being invaded by the Empire, because there's no way that I or anyone else could prevent it. Vader said that the planet was revealed to them by Mara when she was taken prisoner, and I can only imagine that Darth Sidious got the information out of her head. How much they know, I have no clue… maybe they don't know where the planet is.
Sighing, I stand up from the seat and give R5 a brief pat on his dome, to which he beeps back at me before continuing his work. Making my way through the ship I suddenly find HK-47 stomping up to me, apparently wanting to discuss something.
"Query: why did you decide to name this ship after the Ebon Hawk? This vessel is far too inferior to be deserving of that honor," he states.
"Don't let R5 hear you badmouth it," I reply, pushing past him.
"Statement: It's only factual. This piece of Corellian garbage, while heavily modified with interesting hardware it seems, is in poor shape," he continues.
"Yeah? Welcome to the rebellion then. We don't have the best material," I retort.
"Musing: You've sliced the Empire's military funding, and yet you can't acquire proper ships? That seems silly," HK replies. "I recommend a name change."
"Too bad. My ship, my decision," I say, pausing after I realize what he said. "Hey, how did you know about me slicing the-"
"Statement: I've browsed through your computers. Your data is interesting," he says casually.
"Excuse me?" I demand with narrow eyes, glaring irritably at him.
"Query: Are you offended? I know I am offended that you seem to be a better slicer than Revan and yet your attempts to copy him are just so pathetic," he scoffs.
I raise a finger, pointing at him angrily before thinking better of it with a sigh, rolling my eyes and turning back around.
"Fine. Whatever you say," I sigh irritably. "One thing is for sure, you're not getting a memory circuit on my data."
"Correction: I actually have plenty of your data-" he starts to say.
I press a button on my gauntlet, cutting him off mid sentence. I wouldn't be such a brilliant slicer if I didn't come up with a way to protect my computer data; I made a string of code that automatically embeds itself into my computers that erases stolen data at my command and, unless a thief discovers the code and cancels it, they won't keep my data for very long. I allow myself a small grin as HK pauses in confusion, his processor being emptied of whatever he downloaded from my stuff.
"Query: What just happened?" he demands in bewilderment.
"Good luck getting into my stuff again you wacko," I taunt him, walking away.
"Query: You did that?! How did you-" he starts to say, before turning away in frustration.
I shake my head in amusement, pleased at managing to shut the assassin droid up for once before my somberness returns. Sighing, I open the door to the cargo hold to see the others all in there with Toothless, chatting aimlessly with each other. Toothless notices me first, looking up with an excited chirp, gaining the others attention.
"Hi Dad," Mara greets.
"Hello," I say in reply, climbing down to join them. "There's some things I need to talk to you about. All of you."
"Like what?" Hiccup asks, concerned.
"Like I said before, I'm not planning on bringing you guys on trips away from Ahch-To again, not unless the Empire is gone. That's now become more important than ever," I say grimly. "The Empire knows about Ahch-To."
The three widen their eyes in shock, fear and worry starting to fill them.
"What?!" Astrid exclaims.
"They're coming to our planet?" Hiccup asks, alarmed.
"No, as far as I'm aware they don't know its location," I quickly reassure them. "But they know the name. How much more, I'm not sure."
I glance at Mara, noticing the intense feelings of guilt and fear within her as she looks down at the ground aimlessly.
"It's my fault…" she murmurs glumly.
"That's ridiculous. How could it be your fault?" Astrid says.
"Because the Emperor learned it from me," she replies guiltily. "I tried to stop him, but I couldn't keep him out of my mind."
"But that's not your fault," Hiccup argues. "'Mara, we've seen how powerful he is. I don't think you should blame yourself if he looked inside your head."
"If it wasn't for me, he wouldn't know a thing," she insists.
"Mara, there's nothing to be ashamed of in being unable to resist Palpatine. He's stronger than any of us," I tell her, laying a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"If you say so…" she mumbles bitterly.
"I know it may be a painful memory, but, can you recall how much of Ahch-To he learned from you?" I ask her gently.
She glances up at me and then sighs, frowning in discomfort as she recalls the memory of her time in captivity, and when Palpatine would've been searching her mind for information.
"...I think he saw the island, but, I don't think he saw the location," she admits hesitantly. "It seemed like he recognized the name though…"
"He recognized it?" I ask carefully, and she nods in confirmation.
"Yeah, I-I think so," she says.
I think for a moment, trying to determine how the Emperor would have recognized the name. Ahch-To has been hidden away for a long time, way before Satele got here, so it's not like it's easy to learn. Still, the Sith themselves have been in hiding for a long time too, so maybe they've passed down old secrets, all of which Palpatine now has in his possession. Maybe they had something that mentions Ahch-To.
"Okay. I don't think we have to worry about them finding Ahch-To for now," I reassure the others. "But we can't afford any more risks with you three."
"We understand," Hiccup nods his head.
"Yeah," Astrid says in agreement.
The speakers then start beeping lightly, signifying that the Knight Hawk is approaching Atollon. Hearing the signal I make my way up to the cockpit in order to bring the ship out of hyperspace.
Chopper Base - Atollon
Once we came out of hyperspace, I waited a few moments for the Mantis to appear as well, and then led them down to Chopper Base. I went through the usual clearance code routine, assuring the rebel officers that the other ship was with me as well, and then continued on. Flying down to the landing deck I could see the Ghost Crew gathering around, waiting for us to land.
Once the ship is landed I make my way back over to the exit, R5 following along. HK also decides to stop making fun of the ship and comes to the exit as well, bickering with R5 over the state of the Knight Hawk. When I'm in view of the others I roll my eyes in exasperation at the droid's bickering, gaining a scoff from Mara. I open the ramp to allow us to walk out, and the Ghost Crew immediately rush up to us in total anxiety, Boil, Rex and Shaak-Ti all with them.
"Thank goodness you're alright!" Hera says in relief. "When we heard from Kallus that the Empire tracked your location, I feared the worst."
"We got lucky," I reply, wincing at a brief flash of pain.
"You alright there Commander?" Boil asks, taking notice.
"Well enough, nothing too serious," I reassure them.
"Too serious? You look like you've been through the slums!" Zeb scoffs.
"Not really…" I trail off.
I glance back at Mara and the others but she actually shrugs in agreement, Hiccup and Astrid nodding as well. I take a moment to look down at myself, making a face when I realize that I do actually look rather beat up. The aches and pains I was feeling dully now become a bit more apparent, and I grimace in response.
"I guess you have a point…" I sigh tiredly.
"How did you guys escape?" Ezra asks.
"It's hard to explain. Later would be better," I say.
"Where's Sabine?" Astrid asks, noticing her absence.
I take notice as well, seeing that Fenn Rau also wasn't present. Likely they stayed behind if I had to guess.
"She and Fenn Rau stayed behind with Clan Wren. They're going to try rescuing her father and start unifying Mandalore against the Empire," Kanan explains.
"Oh. Sounds like things went well then," she shrugs in reply.
"I'd imagine you were successful before the Empire came, right?" Rex asks me, and I nod my head in response.
"It would also seem you brought new allies," Shaak-Ti remarks.
I look over to see the Mantis Crew disembarking from their ship, looking over in our direction with some uncertainty. I wave them over to signal they're okay, and turn back to the others.
"Unexpected allies, but I think you and Kanan will recognize some of them," I say with a sigh.
"We would?" Kanan asks, confused.
"Are they Jedi?" Ezra asks excitedly.
I nod my head, surprising them all, and turn to face the Mantis Crew as they join up with us. Shaak raises an eye marking upon noticing Cere Junda, nodding her head in agreement with my statement. Kanan is frowning uneasily, sensing their presence as well.
"It would seem you're right Jarik," Shaak remarks.
"I hope we're not intruding," Cere starts off respectfully.
"You have my seal of approval. That's more than enough for them," I reassure her, turning back to the ship. "Now if you'll excuse us, it's past time we return a few people back to their homeworld."
Hiccup and Astrid both glance at each other while Mara frowns in exasperation.
"You're leaving already?" Cal says, surprised.
"Are you sure that's wise?" Cere asks cautiously.
"We've got another 'secret' place. He's very uptight about it," Mara scoffs, jabbing a thumb in my direction.
"For good reason," I retort.
"Well, try not to stay away too long this time," Ezra says hopefully.
"No promises," Mara shrugs.
"Oh, tell Sabine I said hi if you get the chance!" Astrid tells him.
"Sure thing," he replies.
"You guys set to introduce yourselves?" I ask Cere and Hera, making a thumbs up gesture.
"You know we're always happy to have more allies. We'll be fine," Hera replies, crossing her arms with an exasperated smile.
"Great," I say, turning around before stopping once more. "Oh, almost forgot. Cal, Kanan, I think you guys should start chatting with each other. I'm sure you both have a lot to catch up on."
I then follow my group up the ramp into the Knight Hawk, leaving them perplexed.
"Wait, what do you mean 'catch up?'" Cal asks, obviously confused.
"He does stuff like this a lot," Boil tells him with a shrug.
Kanan however, was baffled and suspicious, his mouth turned in a deep, uneasy frown.
"Cal…?" he murmurs. "Cal Kestis?"
I allow myself a small smile at hearing the recognition in Kanan's voice, hitting the button to close the entry ramp. I catch the exasperated looks from both Boil and Rex, and shrug my shoulders at them innocently.
"Do you know me?" Cal asks in surprise, facing Kanan.
Kanan stands there in shock, and just before the door closes I sense realization and disbelief coming over Cal as well, and shake my head in amusement.
"Wait… Caleb…?" he murmurs.
The ramp then closes, ending any further interactions for me. Toothless's whine echoes around the cargo hold as he paws at the floor, indicating his hunger.
"Don't worry bud, we'll be home soon," Hiccup reassures him, looking up at me with a dull expression. "I get the feeling you really enjoy springing surprises on people."
"Ugh, that's not even the worst of what he does," Mara groans exasperatedly. "I can't stand it when he does stupid stuff."
"You know you'd miss it if I stopped," I tease her.
"As if!" she scoffs in reply.
"Well look on the positive side. At least his sense of humor is fun and full of character," Astrid points out. "Not something horrible like Snotlout or the twins."
"Oh gods, the twins…" Hiccup groans, overcome with dread. "They're going to be pestering us about this for ages."
He and Astrid both grumble in frustrated anticipation of what's to come from their friends, and I shrug my shoulders casually.
"You'll be fine," I tell them.
"Query: So where is our next destination in this trash heap?" HK suddenly asks.
We whip our heads around in surprise at his sudden comment, seeing him standing on the level above us, R5 beside him. R5 beeps in frustration and smacks his leg, although HK doesn't pay him much attention.
"Oh, I forgot about you," I grumble. "You're not coming. You're staying here on Atollon."
"Query: I beg your pardon?" he asks.
"You heard me," I state simply. "I don't want you on the planet we're headed to."
"Commentary: As Revan's descendant it would be most proper for you to have me at your side, as strange and annoying as you may be," he argues.
Frowning, I decide to change tactics.
"You enjoy fighting, right?" I ask him.
"Obvious statement: Why, I am an assassin droid. It's my primary function, so even if I did not enjoy killing I would have no choice. Thankfully, I enjoy it very much," he states proudly.
"Talk about sadistic," Astrid murmurs to Hiccup.
"Yeah. Wouldn't want him around the village," he replies in agreement.
"Well where we're going, you would not be able to do any of that," I tell him, and he almost looks bewildered. "The place we're going is very remote, completely hidden from the Empire. And there is absolutely no way I'd let you kill anything there."
"Query: I wouldn't... kill, anything?" he asks in disappointment.
"No, you wouldn't," I state firmly.
Mara nods her head in agreement.
"Yeah. But if you stay here and work with the rebels, then you could do some fighting against the Empire, and there's plenty of Imperials for you to deal with," she adds as incentive.
HK stands still for a few moments, mulling over the idea before nodding his head, optics gleaming.
"Statement: Very well. I will stay here," he decides.
"Thank you," I sigh in relief.
Of course, making sure HK doesn't do anything stupid and ridiculous while I'm gone will be a challenge since he seems to only obey me, to an extent, or follows with whatever he feels is beneficial to him. I'd hate to force the difficult task of containing his sadism to the others, but it's either that or let him go insane on Ahch-To.
Boil and Rex are going to love this… note the sarcasm.
Author's Note: Hey readers! Sorry for the shorter chapter, but you would not believe how difficult and frustrating it is to write a scene introducing the Mantis Crew and the Ghost Crew together in this type of casual setting. Every way I tried just seemed cringy or seriously unrealistic/out of place. Oh well.
Next up is the 'Through Imperial Eyes' story!
(P.S. The exchange between Revan and Mandalore the Ultimate may not be precisely accurate to how it actually is: I literally could not find Ultimate's final moments where he reveals the Sith tricked him anywhere. Eh, I'm happy with what I put, and it's not supposed to be the same anyways considering their relationship.)